Cyprus will not be lured into Turkey’s game of amplifying tensions in the eastern Mediterranean, the government said on Tuesday, as Ankara issued a new marine advisory inside the island’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).
“This has been Ankara’s usual tactic since 2011 when the Republic of Cyprus began these [hydrocarbons exploration] activities in its EEZ,” government spokesman Nicos Christodoulides told reporters.
He said that following Turkey’s issuance of its latest Navtex, or notice to mariners, Cyprus issued its own Navtex specifically voiding Ankara’s.
At the same time, Christodoulides added, Cyprus is making moves on a diplomatic level. He did not elaborate.
“We continue with the same approach. We shall not do Turkey the favour of creating, on a public level, a crisis in the eastern Mediterranean, a crisis which is non-existent.”
The government’s energy plans in offshore block 11 were moving ahead without any problems, he added.
“Our approach can be summed up as follows: seriousness, calm and few words spoken.”
The official was commenting on Turkey’s latest move to reserve parts of the Cypriot EEZ for its own seismic surveys.
On Monday, Turkey issued Navtex 711/17 by which it reserved an area including parts of blocks 1, 6 and 7 of Cyprus’ EEZ, to the west and southwest of the island.
The effective dates of the Turkish marine advisory are from July 17 to December 16. The purported seismic surveys are being conducted by the survey ship Barbaros Hayreddin Pasa, sup-ported by two other vessels, the Bravo and the Apollo Moon.
Reports said the Barbaros was also being escorted by one or two Turkish warships.
At the time of going to print, the Barbaros was located southwest of Paphos, well outside Cyprus’ territorial waters.
The Turkish seismic vessel was also nowhere near the West Capella drillship, currently operating in block 11 on behalf of Total and ENI.
However the West Capella was being monitored at a distance by the Turkish frigate TCG Gokceada, outside the exclusion zone around the drillship and again in international waters.
Turkey, which does not recognise the Republic of Cyprus, claims that part of block 6 falls with-in its own continental shelf.
In a letter addressed to the UN General Assembly dated April 12, Turkey’s permanent representative to the United Nations Feridun Sinirlioglu expressed “grave concern” regarding Cyprus’ “provocative act” to grant an exploration licence for block 6.
The licence was awarded to a consortium of Italian and French oil giants ENI and Total.
Turkey’s claims on the island’s EEZ partly overlap with Cyprus’ blocks 1, 4, 6 and 7. Ankara also supports the breakaway regime’s claims on blocks 1, 2, 3, 8, 9, 12 and 13, including within a few kilometres from the Aphrodite gas field.
